RTH Physician Featured in The Hospitalist magazine

Dr. Ferrance is medical director of the hospitalist service, hospice, and hospital-based quality at Riverside Tappahannock Hospital in Virginia. He began his medical career as a chiropractor before deciding to take a different path, entering medical school, and finding that he loved inpatient care. He is triple board-certified in internal medicine, pediatrics, and palliative care; this last specialty is the area he is most passionate about.

Undergraduate education:Indiana University of Pennsylvania for two years before gaining early admission into Life University College of Chiropractic in Marietta, Ga. After several years in private practice, Dr. Ferrance entered medical school. Thus, he holds two doctorates and no bachelor's degree.

Medical school:The Medical College of Virginia in Richmond.

Notable:Riverside Tappahannock Hospital is a closed, rural hospital, so Dr. Ferrance and his team of four hospitalists and one nurse practitioner handle all medical admissions, as well as most of the surgical admissions. They manage the ICU and do most of their own procedures.

FYI:He has authored two fiction articles published in the Journal of Hospital Medicine, titled "Death is a crafty adversary" and "Death is a crafty old friend."1,2 He also makes custom pens as a hobby, using exotic woods and acrylics.

Quotable:"To me, being a SHM fellow is recognition of the time and energy I've given to hospital medicine. I have worked hard to bring good quality care to my small hospital through the use of standardized order sets, real-time chart review, and mentoring."